Bringing virtual teams and cross-cultural business education into the classroom

Abstract

This chapter describes the genesis, design, and implementation of an original cross-cultural experiment taught in English using a videoconferencing system connecting the University of Tsukuba’s MBA Program in International Business in Japan and the Grenoble Ecole de Management’s Master in Management Program in France. The course was conducted over several weeks, involving students working in mixed and geographically distributed virtual teams on various exercises and case studies dealing with issues specific to cross-cultural management. First, the evolution of this course over the past 3 years is reviewed. Second, the insightful content of the students’ final assignment on their experience in the classroom and beyond with both faculty and peers is used to assess changes in the course’s features and examine the contribution of such course. Last, concrete recommendations are provided on the course’s institutional support, structure, blended learning, tangible diversity, and cross-cultural learning.